A new legal battle has begun over drugs available on social media. Now, some families who lost children to drug overdoses are suing Snapchat, demanding changes to protect their children.
Dozens of parents are calling for change, suing social media platforms for the deaths of their children after taking illegal drugs sold by dealers on the apps.
“When it comes to our kids, Snapchat is the biggest open-air drug market in America,” parent Amy Neville said.
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Father Sam Chapman added: “Putting your child on Snapchat is like sending your child to the most dangerous drug-infested area and hoping they do well.” Ta.
More than 60 families have joined the lawsuit, alleging that Snapchat’s features such as automatic message deletion and “eye-only” privacy make it difficult to track illegal activity.
Neville remembers the night his 14-year-old son Alexander told him about his drug use.
“‘I wanted to try Oxy. I got it from a Snapchat dealer. It’s got me hooked and I don’t know why,'” she recalled him saying.
Alex died the night after her mother said she took oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl, which she said she received from someone she met on Snapchat.
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“Dealers are in our kids’ pockets 24/7,” Neville said. “We’ll come to your door and deliver to your home or neighborhood. It’s that easy.”
Sammy Chapman also passed away. He was just 16 years old when his parents said he overdosed on fentanyl, which he obtained from a “dealer” he said he met on an app.
“He delivered lethal doses of fentanyl to our house like pizza,” said Sammy’s father.
Snapchat’s owner, Snap, responded to the claims by saying that the company uses “cutting-edge technology” to keep users safe and that it “stops dealers from abusing our platform and eliminates the dangers of fentanyl.” sex.”
But many parents said they had no intention of suing for money. They just want to do more to protect their children.
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“Let’s be honest, right? They designed it. They know how to fix it,” Neville said.
Chapman’s family said the local district attorney did not indict the suspected drug dealer in Chapman’s death. They are currently pushing for Sammy’s Law, which aims to hold social media companies accountable for crimes committed on their platforms.